Page 35 of Bad Blood

The second Liam notices the car is one second too late.

One second too late for me to react.

One second too late for me to make sense of what I see.

One fucking second too late.

They say your life flashes in front of your eyes right before you die.

But I don’t think it’s true.

It’s confusion. Disbelief. Fear. Liam trying to make sense of what’s going on.

My vision blurs, my head spins. Extra saliva coats my tongue. Hot, sticky moisture prickles over my skin. There’s a flash, and everything goes black.

The next thing I know, Liam is staring at me. My head is in his lap, his hand slapping my cheek.

“Fucking-A. You okay?”

“What happened?” A group of concerned faces hovers above me.

I wipe my hand across my cheek as Axel’s tongue assaults me a second time.

“You passed out.” Liam helps me as I try to push onto my elbows.

“Just now?”

“Yeah.” He hooks a hand under my arm, and someone else helps him drag me to my feet. “I was walking to the intersection, asked you to join us, and your face turned white as a sheet.”

“But you stepped in front of a car.” I try to recall what he’s explaining but see things playing differently in my head.

He scowls. “I wasn’t anywhere near a car.”

Someone offers me a bottle of water, and I guzzle it before splashing the rest over my head. “But I saw you . . .”

“Your perception is off. I was only a couple of feet away. How do you think I got to you so fast?”

“But you . . . I saw . . . the screech . . . Bane was over by—the car.” I point to the intersection. It is farther away from us than I thought. I’m a dumbass.

A nerdy-looking man in glasses and scrubs confirms Liam’s story, filling in a couple of blanks. “A sudden lack of oxygen caused by decreased blood flow to the brain, and you pass out. Were you holding your breath?”

The crowd loses interest in my collapse to the sidewalk. And I wish I could recoup some of my dignity and disappear with them.

Liam pulls my arm over his shoulder, leading me toward the arched entry of the building. “You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah, I’m gonna go upstairs, get some water. Do some research.”

“Everything’s going to be fine.” Liam averts his gaze and drops my arm, steadying me on my feet before he leaves me on my own. My not having to explain what I mean shows Liam knows exactly where my mind is at the moment.

“Why’d you talk to Bree before me?”

“Wanted some backup.” He follows me inside, hangs his head when I turn, and makes eye contact.

I jab a finger into the elevator call button and grab his arm before he can run off. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

I step on as the doors slide open, waiting for his response. He sighs and runs a hand through his hair, refusing to make eye contact as he stays outside of the elevator.

“Liam?”

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